Changing a macerator toilet to normal toilet

AdrianC

Aha! And there's your problem... Move the bathroom to the back, route the soil pipe internally front-to-back (bet there isn't enough fall between the floors), or live with it.

AlexMac

I'm probably coming too late to this to add value... except to say that in respect of ...

Doozergirl wrote: »

...Personally, if there is a cheap way to route the pipework 'normally' it would have been done as macerators themselves aren't cheap...

...I'd say not necessarily. Neighbours in our last flat had a macerator; above our spare bedroom; really noisy, and also utterly pointless. There would have been an easy gravity-fed pathway for a full-size soil outlet to the outsdied soil stack, so they replaced it with a conventional run the first time it failed. All I can assume is that the plumber who fitted it originally did so for cosmetic reasons, because they were idle, or maybe because they wanted to charge more! I thought they were only really needed in basements where the 5h17 had to be pumped up...?

And less cynically; we installed a second loo in a flat where there was a 15 metre run from the new loo, through a side loft, a bedroom and then a kitchen to a remote soil stack outside on the furthest wall. No problem; the pipe was boxed in along a skirting and you hardly noticed it, and tucked in under and behing kitchen units. The builder advised that we really didn't need much of a "fall" as long as we flushed well. He installed rodding points in case it blocked but we never needed to clear it.

janer65

Hello AlexMac, your scenario sounds interesting, can you recall how long it took to install and what the rough cost was?
thanks

Rambosmum

We have a macerator in our loft bathroom for the same reason you do. To get it changed to a 'normal' toilet we would either need to lower the ceiling in the landing (and significantly, to allow for the necessary angle to stop poo from just sitting in the pipe) or run it down the outside of the house (we are end terrace), round the attached garage, then connect it to the main waste sewer which runs through our back garden. This would be around 30 - 40 meters of piping and digging required in addition to that we would also need the drive way, path, patio and lawn repairing and permission from the water board to add additional pipes (which can be expensive).


But this is the second house we've lived in with a macerator, and as long as they are above ground, we have never had an issue with them!

EachPenny

AdrianC wrote: »

The connection to the existing soil pipe would normally be done outside, since the soil pipe normally runs down the back wall - so no need to disrupt the interior.

It should be as straightforward as extending the soil vent upwards, and tapping off that for the new bathroom.

Ok for external stacks, but many properties have them internally of course.

There's also the complication that the loft is usually wholly above eaves level, so unless the stack is on a full-height gable end wall, the waste pipe would either need to exit out through the roof (with all the hassle and ugliness that entails) or else drop down to first floor level to exit through a wall.

And in terms of quick-fix loft conversion, cutting into a cast-iron external stack is never going to be the favoured option of someone not used to working with CI.

AlexMac

Just noticed your Q...

janer65 wrote: »

Hello AlexMac, your scenario sounds interesting, can you recall how long it took to install and what the rough cost was?
thanks

It was parcelled up in a wider refurb, so not sure, and as the whole flat was being refurbished, dust and disruption during works was not as issue...

But cost wise, and assuming you might also want to replace the toilet pan and cistern, materials would be a few hundred quid, possibly a lot less, and the few days for installation the same.

I'd invite in a couple of plumbers; you might be pleasnatly surprised. The key thing will be whether there is a viable route through the house to run a 10cm/4inch diameter pipe from the "multiquick" (the straight or angled junction pipe or flexible hose connector behind the pan) to a soil stack, which is usually (but not always) outside. If the soil stack's plastic, connection is fast and easy; but even if it's older cast Iron, they can joint in a section of plastic with connectors designed for the job.

It's not even rocket science to run a new soil stack down the outside of the house and dig a connection into an existing sewer or inspection hatch; that might add a few hundred, but my builders did it in a couple of days. Strictly speaking, you should advise the Council Building Control officer if tyou mess with the sewers, but not everyone bothers.

Anyway, happy plumbing!

janer65

AlexMac thanks for your reply, yes we are trying to get some plumbers to give us their opinion.